


Birthday

by Anonymous



Series: fem!Bruce Wayne 'verse [2]
Category: Batman (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, F/M, Feels, a little angst maybe??, batman/robin bonding, genderbent bruce wayne, robin!steph
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-07
Updated: 2016-04-07
Packaged: 2018-05-31 19:02:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6483412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ruby Wayne mourns while her various family/friends cheer her up. Steph just wants to know what's going on.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Birthday

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I have no idea any of the timelines, so I made stuff up. If it's screwy, that explains why. 
> 
> In other news, Ruby is Batman not Batwoman because she thought people would be more intimidated by a man. Plus then nobody would trace it back to her. 
> 
> this is in the same 'verse as Grappling Hook, but you don't have to read that first at all.

When Ruby wakes up, she knows exactly what day it it. The weight crushes down on her, and she considers skipping work. But she can’t, so she gets up and starts to get dressed. She goes out on her balcony, and inhales the morning air, thinking maybe that will get her mind off of the date. There’s a whoosh of air next to her and the smell of flowers drift through the air. 

“I swear, Kent, if you got me flowers….” She growls without opening her eyes. “I’m fine. I don’t need sympathy.”

“I know you don’t,” Clark says. “But since I have these flowers here, I’ll just put them in a vase, shall I?” She doesn’t respond and she knows she doesn’t need to. He disappears into the manor and comes back a few minutes later. He wraps his arms around her waist from behind, and she leans against him. 

“I’m fine,” she said without attempting to move from his embrace. “I’m fine.” 

“I never said you weren’t,” Clark says. He rests his head on hers. They don’t say anything for a few minutes, before Ruby leads Clark downstairs. He grabs her hand and for once, she doesn’t pull away. When they arrive in the kitchen, she sees that Alfred has made her favorite breakfast. He sets it on the table in front of her and puts a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently. Ruby knows that that is his way of offering sympathy to her. She gives him a small smile and he returns it, then goes back to the kitchen to clean up. 

When she arrives at work, Lucius Fox gives her a bottle of champagne and Ruby is surprised he remembered the date. She never talks about it, never allows herself to mourn. 

At lunch she gets a phone call from Dick. She answers the phone and he says, “Hey.”

“Hello,” she says. She wonders how many people will offer their condolences for her today. She doesn't want to hear expressions of sympathy. Luckily, nobody who knows what happened six years ago today has actually said anything about it.

“Listen, I was thinking maybe I could come down to Gotham for a few days?” Dick says.

“Why?” Ruby asks suspiciously. 

“It’s been too long, Mom,” he says. He only calls her that sometimes, like on the anniversary of either of their parents deaths or on her birthday or apparently today. “Can I not come see my favorite Batlady every now and then?”

“I guess,” Ruby says begrudgingly. She knows the real reason, of course. “I’ll tell Alfred to prepare.” To be honest, she does want to see him. Today, especially. 

“Thanks, Mom!” She can hear his smile. “I’ll be there around eight, okay?”

“That’s fine,” she says. “That’s great.”

“See you then.”

“See you then,” she responds and he hands up. She calls Alfred to tell him. Alfred sounds pleased. 

There is a knock on the doors of Wayne Manor. Ruby goes to get it, thinking it’s Dick. She wonders why he’s knocking, and not just walking right in. Or coming up through the Batcave and announcing his presence by dropping from the ceiling. She opens the door and stops. Timothy Drake is standing there, hands shoved in his pockets. He looks a bit sheepish. 

“What are you doing here?” Ruby asks and she can’t keep the bewilderment out of her voice. 

“I, uh, came to, um,” Tim says. He mutters the rest of his sentence. 

“What was that?” Ruby asks. 

“See if you are doing okay,” he says to his feet. 

“Oh.” She is surprised, but she shouldn’t be. He saw her last year, and the year before. She thinks she’s just surprised because people keep remembering the date. But then again Tim is a genius. So there’s that. She clears her throat. “Thank you. I am fine.”

“That’s good,” he says. “I should go.”

“Bye,” Ruby says, amused at his obvious embarrassment. He nods in reply and runs away. Ruby closes the door and leans against it, sighing. Then she turns and barely keeps herself from shrieking as she comes face-to-face with an upside-down Dick Grayson. 

Batman can sense Robin’s eyes on her. Steph knows something is up, Ruby can tell. But Robin asked once, back in the cave, and Batman had denied it, so she does not ask again. 

Batman drops from the rooftops, Robin and Nightwing next to her. Nightwing is about to go off on his own, but Robin had spotted something fishy down below and so Dick decided to stay for a few minutes. Batman approaches the scene in front of her. There are a few men she recognizes as some drug lords who have been a pain for a while now unconscious and tied to a lamppost that’s halfway into the alley. 

“Are they dead?” Robin asks in a whisper.

“No,” Batman says. She points to the wall. “Look.” There are words written on the wall, illuminated by the single lightbulb in the lamp overhead that works. A glance overhead shows that the other lightbulbs have been shot. The spray-painted words read: “FOR TODAY ONLY: NO KILLING. LOVE YA MOM.” There is a heart drawn under the message. NIghtwing reads the message and starts to laugh. 

“Only Jay,” he says, doubling over. “Oh, that’s one heck of a present.” Robin reads the message again and turns to face Batman. 

“Did...Red Hood do this?” She asks. Batman nods. She isn’t surprised he remembers. He was there six years ago, and there again the next year when the tragedy happened. Privately, she thinks Jason’s gift is probably the most useful. 

“Did something happen today?” Robin asks, her brows furrowed under the mask. Nightwing has recovered from his fit, and he exchanges a look with Batman. She can read his message, loud and clear: Your choice. She sighs. 

“I’ll tell you after patrol,” she says. Robin’s face lights up, clearly not having expected to be told at all. 

Later, Batman is grappling across a roof when a voice crackles to life in her ear. 

“I saw Jason’s message,” Oracle says. “And I swear I meant to offer you condolences. I had a reminder and everything. I’m so sorry.” Batman sighs. 

“It’s fine, Oracle,” she says. “I didn’t expect you to remember.” 

“Well, I should’ve. I didn’t even get Red Hood’s message at first, but then I saw scrolling through my email--”

“Oracle,” Batman cuts off. “It’s. Fine.”

“Okay, okay.” Oracle is silent for two seconds. “Hey, since you’re on the comm….”

“Nightwing will meet you at the Italian place at one thirty,” Batman says, landing on a rooftop. “There’s a reservation in your name already.”

“Oh. Okay. Thanks, Ruby.”

“No names on the field!”

Batman pulls into the cave and parks her car. Nightwing rolls in a second later. 

“So what’s going on?” Robin asks, bounding out of the Batmobile and taking off her mask. “What’s today?” She gasps. “It’s not--”

“No, it’s not my parents’ deathday,” Ruby says, pulling off the cowl. She sits at the computer. Dick excuses himself to shower and change. Steph sits on the floor across from Ruby. Ruby sighs. “Okay, so do you know who Ra’s al Ghul is?” Steph nods. “Well, he has a son. Thaddeus. Thaddeus and I...we had a relationship.”

“When was this?”

“Seven years ago, Stephanie, it was a long time before Clark. Well, before Clark and I were….you know. Anyways, Thaddeus left to go help his father. He was only gone two months before I...found out I was pregnant.” Steph’s hands fly to her mouth and suddenly Ruby remembers with terrifying clarity that Stephanie Brown is the one person who can actually relate to this story. 

“Anyway,” she continues, pretending to ignore Steph’s expression. “I didn’t tell Thaddeus. I just kept quiet and Dick became Batman for a while. I gave birth to a son. He--” She breaks off. She’s never really talked about it before. Dick had explained it to Tim.

“You don’t have to talk about it,” Steph assures her quickly. “I get it. I really, really do.”

“No, no, I can do this.” She takes a deep breath. “I named him Damian. He was a beautifully healthy baby.”

“What happened to him?” Steph sounds afraid of the answer. 

“Thaddeus found out about him,” she said. “So when Damian turned one, Thaddeus broke into my house, and….” A lump forms in her throat and she can’t finish. 

“She hasn’t heard from him since,” Dick finishes from behind her. She hadn’t realized he was out of the shower. “Thaddeus or Damian. Today was his birthday.” Steph looks at her with wide eyes and slowly creeps toward her. Ruby doesn’t know what’s happening before Steph wraps her arms around her. Steph is still kneeling on the floor, so her face presses into Ruby’s middle. 

“I am so, so, sorry,” Steph says into her stomach. “I know it always sounds fake, but I am really, really, sorry.” Ruby feels tears threaten to spill out of her, but she holds them in. She does set her arms loosely around Steph, though. After a minute, Steph breaks away and wipes tears from her eyes. She somehow manages a smile at Ruby. 

“Well, at least he’s alive, right?” Steph says. “Thaddeus left you for his dad, which means he’s loyal to family, and Ra’s has that pit thingy, right? So Damian’s probably still alive, which means eventually he’ll want to meet you. You’re his mother.” Ruby realizes she has never thought of it like that before. She tries to smile back at Steph. 

“I guess you’re right.” 

(Two years later, Ruby Wayne can’t find any of the batkids. She is worried and stressed, because it is almost Damian’s birthday, and she can’t find Dick, Cass, or Tim. Stephanie is gone too. And the Batplane is missing. Barbara assures her that she’ll find them, but she sounds like she’s keeping something from them. Ruby goes so far as to look for Jason, but she can’t find him, either. Clark looks and listens, but it’s a big world and there are many ways to avoid his gaze. So Ruby actually takes off of work, and she searches for them. On Damian’s birthday, Ruby is still in bed at three, trying not to worry herself to pieces. Suddenly, Clark comes in and one look at his face has her following him to the Batcave. The Batplane lands, and Tim stumbles out first, with gashes all up his arms and legs, the Robin suit nearly in tatters. Dick has cuts on his face and body, and he is bruised, but he helps Cass support Jason, who is nearly unconscious. Cass looks mostly fine, a few bruises here and there but nothing major. And then Steph comes out, bloody as well but carrying a small boy in her arms. All of Ruby’s kids collapse on the ground, and Ruby, Clark, and Alfred run over to them. Alfred goes to Jason, and Dick and Tim point to Steph when Ruby tries to help them first. The boy in Steph’s arms is unconscious or asleep, with only a few scratches on him. He is wearing civilian clothes, and Ruby takes one look at him and her heart stops. She knows who he is with one glance. She gathers the little boy in her arms and holds him close. Ruby wants to look at her other kids, but she can’t tear her eyes away from her son in her arms, and he stirs and opens his eyes, which are the exact same shade of blue as hers, and she chokes. 

“Where am I?” He asks, instantly alert and looking around. “What’s going on?”

“I--” Ruby realizes she has no idea how to explain, or what to say. “I--” She realizes she is crying, and she smiles because this is absurd, and she knows Thaddeus and Ra’s will be angry, but she is so, so grateful for her family, and she can feel all eyes on her as she opens her mouth. 

“I’m your mother, Damian. Happy birthday.”)

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are greatly appreciated, thanks :)


End file.
